Sheila Reynolds is the owner of S&D Living, a coffee and interior design shop in Wagga, but during the pandemic, an idea struck to bring a taste of home to the city.

Ms Reynolds has lived in Wagga for nearly two decades but was born in Malaysia and loves the food from her region.

"I wanted to introduce authentic Malaysian food in Wagga," she said. "I am excited to share more of my culture with Wagga, which is my home now."

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After researching options, Ms Reynolds came across a company that transformed shipping containers into commercial kitchens.

The use of shipping containers is not new, and indeed many homes and even accommodation places have used the corrugated structures as a foundation.

"It's hard to put a kitchen inside the shop, I would have to go through a lot of processes, and it would have taken over a lot of my shop," she said.

"Whereas a shipping container is much more versatile and would fit in the back section of the property.

"I like the idea that it is separate from my other business as well. It's literally like a normal kitchen, but it is all compact."

It has not been a quick solution as Ms Reynolds had to work with a company and go through the council's development processes.

"It was about six months before it arrived," she said.

"The plan is to run it almost like a mini restaurant out the back here, so we will have small events and people can come get a taste of Malaysia."

Ms Reynolds said part of being a small business owner, particularly in a regional town, is finding new ways to attract customers.

She said the pandemic proved that it is always hard to be prepared for anything that might happen, so "you just have to be flexible".

"I am just going through the final approvals for it all now," Ms Reynolds said. "But, I am so excited."

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